Sunday, July 27, 2008

This is No Name Kitten. She is roughly 4-5 weeks old, and was born on a farm, and then apparently fell on her head. She is, as Mrs. TK artfully put it, "Dain Bramaged." So much so that when I first met her, she couldn't see, couldn't walk, couldn't do much of anything except lie there and cry and twitch. So, of course, she is temporarily staying with us while she rehabilitates. It's actually been pretty cool, watching her re-learn everything from eating to seeing to walking. After a couple of days, she could move around, but her wiring was clearly faulty. She would try to walk, and her back legs would kick up over her head and she'd basically accidentally somersault. It was simultaneously sad and hilarious.

Fortunately, the dogs seem to like her. Here she is hiding:

She's much better now, she can walk/stumble without somersaulting, and while she still runs into things pretty regularly, she doesn't fall down nearly as much. She is No Name Kitten because I believe that as soon as you name an animal, you are tempted to keep it, and I can't take on another member to the pack. So No Name Kitten will, after a few more days, have to find someone else to take care of her. It shouldn't be hard, since a) she won't be retarded for much longer and b) she's fucking adorable.

But until then:

She should be fine. Also, she should be plenty clean since Audrey the Beagle enjoys constantly licking her.

Couple more notes on the weekend:

We went shopping on Saturday and when we got back on the highway, got caught up in a horrendous traffic snare. Why? Because the highway was jammed up with people going to... a Kenny Chesney concert. Sigh. There are few things more upsetting that watching a bunch of New Englanders suddenly acting "country" because they're going to see some douchebag country singer. People in cowboy hats, plaid shirts with the sleeves ripped off - I wanted to kill everyone on the road. There was even a car with "Kenny Chesney #1 Fan!!" written in white on their rear window. Incidentally, that car was full of guys. Die, all of you. Please. Needless to say, Chesney does NOT belong here. Instead, I'd rather he was here.

But, as a neat little segue, last week I wrote a post on The Music is the Message about "screamy music." Over the weekend, I was looking up a bunch of the bands that people recommended in the comments section, including a band called Gallows, recommended by an anonymous reader. So I found and downloaded an album... and was sort of baffled. Well, come to find out there are two bands by that name. One, this band a British hardcore punk band that when I finally tracked them down, is actually fucking awesome (thanks, Anon!).

The other, the band I dl'd by accident, is this band, whose music was this sort of lazy, laid back hillbilly porch music that, to be honest, I really liked. I might even put them on the list. Clearly, based on the album art, they are totally dissimilar.

So, by happy accident, I discovered two new (and completely different) bands.

Monday, July 21, 2008

4a: Spider-Man II - Succeeds in being engaging, exciting and fun as well.

4b: Blade- Snipes mastered everything about this role - the movements, the darkness, the general badassery, the whole thing. The second one ain't bad either.

3: Superman II - Kneel before Zod!

2: Iron Man - Perhaps not the strongest film on the list (though still damn good), but Downey is note-perfect, possibly the best comic book character portrayal ever - yes, even better than Bale as Batman.

1: The Dark Knight - Holy shit. Holy shit. We saw it last night, and yes, it is amazing. It does not live up to the hype... it exceeds it. Also, Ledger really is that fucking good. Daniel Carlson gave it a splendid write-up here.

Yes, none of the X-Men movies made the list - the first two are wonderful, no doubt, but they really never made me feel like I was watching the X-Men from the comics. They always felt like a really, really good episode of "Mutant X" - with the exception of a couple of shots of Wolverine. They're still great movies, just not top five.

Also notably absent is Batman Begins, which is not at all fair. It belongs in the top five, but I cheated because I had too many in there (there's already six in my top five anyway). So consider The Dark Knight as the two rolled into one entry. Other honorable mentions: Spider Man I, The Incredible Hulk, Blade II, Batman (1989). Also, I have a bit of a soft spot for Superman Returns.

Top Five Comic Book Movies that spit in the faces of fans:

5: Batman and Robin - The worst of the original four by a long shot (although Batman Forever sucked big time as well. Completely missed the mark in every conceivable way, with every single actor in it over-acting. Interestingly, I've read that this movie served as a wake-up call for George Clooney, who started being much more serious about his role selection after this.

4: The Punisher (2004) - A miserable, cheesy, PG-13 shitshow of a movie. It felt absolutely nothing like a Punisher movie - the Punisher, one of the darkest, most violent and unhinged characters in the marvel universe... never actually punishes. He's no more than a prankster in this. Awful. I pray that Ray Stevenson's upcoming portrayal will salvage this character.

3: Elektra - Not even the hotness that is Jennifer Garner could salvage this mess.

2: X-Men III - I will never forgive Brett Ratner for this disaster. It completely throws the canon out the window, effectively neutered one of the best characters in the Marvel universe, killed off two key players, and basically just butchered the franchise forever.

1: Catwoman - Not content with being the worst comic book movie ever made, Pitof (note: never trust a director with only one name) succeeded in making one of the worst movies ever, in any genre, period.

Friday, July 18, 2008

1) Today is my last day as the Pajiba Love... person. It's been interesting. I've probably read more pop culture information in the last four days than I have in the last four years, but... I enjoyed it.

Thursday, July 17, 2008

This week's review: 1994's The Crow. Sadly, I think this movie is frequently forgotten in discussions about best comic book-inspired movies. I probably watch it once a year, and it is consistently excellent. So please, click here and get some.

Tuesday, July 15, 2008

In case you were wondering, the trip to Seattle wasn't so good. Once we GOT there, it was spectacular. Better, in fact. Orcas Island, where we stayed Friday and Saturday night for the wedding, is breathtakingly gorgeous. Mountains, forests, beautiful, glassy waters that you can see straight to the bottom of. Quaint little towns that serve food that made me want to swoon. Friday night we went to a "Paella party" at one of the beaches, where someone cooked a gigantic cast-iron pan of paella - enough to feed over 50 people. It, also, made me want to swoon.

Saturday I ate Salmon Benedict for breakfast. It came with avocado, and I'm weeping thinking about it right now. Then we walked around a bit, then Mrs. TK and I and another couple of friends went kayaking, where we saw seals and roughly 2,000 starfish of varying colors and sizes. I also got to leap off big rocks into the ocean. That night was the wedding, which was also lovely - picturesque, fun, and more good food and drink.

So overall, the time there was amazing. The time getting there, however... not so much. I don't want to get into it too much, because it will make me seethe with rage and begin biting people's faces... which is what I do when I think about air travel in general. But allow me to sum it up with one simple fact:

We were leaving from Boston, MA. Flying to Seattle, Washington.

We spent seven (SEVEN!) hours... in Greensboro, South Carolina. Why, you ask? That's an excellent question. The answer, of course, is because THERE IS A GOD WHO IS AN EVIL, MALEVOLENT BASTARD AND HE CURSES MY EVERY WAKING FUCKING MOMENT.

Door to door, the trip out there took about 15-16 hours. I wanted to kill everyone around me. Then bring them back from the dead so I could kill them again.

Anyway. I've got some pictures that I'll post later.

By the way, I'm doing the "Pajiba Love" daily bit over at Pajiba this week, since Stacey's on vacation. Take a look if you've got a moment. Click here for today's.

Wednesday, July 09, 2008

So I'll be off the grid for the next few days - we're going to see my good friend Chris get married in one of the more complicated wedding trips ever: a plane to Seattle, followed by a rental car to Anacortes, followed by a ferry to Orcas Island, one of the lovely San Juan Islands. The getting there is a bitch, but the result will be a blast. Anyway, check Pajiba later this afternoon for a review, and The Music is the Message will keep chugging along - we're still shooting for a post a day, until we run out of ideas - unlikely considering the participants.

So anyway, have a splendiferous few days. Let's hope I don't have any awful airplane-related incidents. I'd hate to see a repeat of this or this. Because frankly, I don't think I can handle any more.